Since I Met You
by Quixotic Cervantes
Summary: Confronted by the Sohma family, Tohru must face the consequences of a decision she made years ago.


**Disclaimer: _Fruits Basket_ is way too cute for me to have invented it. **

_asdf- thoughts/flashback _

* * *

"Miss Honda!"

Tohru turned around, her blue eyes wide in question. She saw one of her coworkers running towards her with a coat in his arms.

"Miss Honda, you forgot your coat. We can't have you getting ill, this week especially."

Tohru nodded, laughing quietly. It was true after all, they were merging with another company this week, they needed everyone they could get. She took her coat, bowing slightly as she thanked him. After putting on her coast, she turned and began walking away once more.

"Miss Honda…"

She glanced back, "Yes, Takahashi?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to go out to dinner…tonight…with me."

Tohru's eyes widened, heat rose to her face. She stammered a bit before choking out a response.

"Takahashi…you're very sweet. But I really can't."

Disappointment filled his eyes. He nodded and turned around. Tohru sighed as she watched him walk away. She continued her walk from the beginning. It was finally Friday. She could go home and relax for a few days. _Maybe I should have accepted his offer. It's been nearly five years._ She followed the well known path to a small building three blocks away. She had barely opened the door when she was assaulted.

"Mama!"

Tohru looked down. Two sets of bright hazel eyes stared up at her. Wide smiles adorned her children's faces. She smiled and bent down, hugging them to her.

"Are you two ready to go?"

Both nodded, running to grab their coats while Tohru spoke with the owner of the day care. Holding her sons hands, she lead them to their apartment. She listened quietly as they recapped their day, laughing quietly when they attempted to pronounce a word that was clearly too advanced.

They finally reached their fourth floor apartment as she discussed dinner options with them. She moved to unlock the door, only to find it already open. She frowned, turning to the boys.

"Daisuke, Souta, I want you to go to Mrs. Sachi's. I'll come get you in a little while, okay?"

Her sons nodded before running down the hall. She made sure they were in the elderly woman's apartment before bracing herself.

She opened the door and entered the room. The lights were on, though nothing else seemed to be out of place. She slowly progressed, trying to make as little noise as possible. She finally spotted the intruder standing in her living room before her table of pictures. She gasped as she immediately recognized the tall figure. His brown hair cut, as always, to cover his left eye.

Hearing her gasp, the figured turned. A small smile softened his features as he nodded his head towards her.

"Tohru Honda, it's been quite some time."

She was dumbstruck, not sure how to respond. Her mouth opened a few times before she was finally able to form the words she needed to. "Yes it has, Hatori."

He set down the picture he had been examining. Tohru's heart skipped a beat as she recognized it. It was a picture of her and the boys on their fourth birthday. She quickly looked back to Hatori, immediately defensive at the disappointed look on his face. She was about to question his presence when he began to speak.

"Since none of the Sohmas have seen you in the last few years I assumed you had broken all ties with us. However, when it came to my attention that your disappearance seemed to coincide with Kyo's, I had hoped you were with him."

His eyes, previously locked on the picture, locked with hers. A cold accusation burned in their depths. It was all Tohru could do to stand strong and not burst into tears.

"Kyo returned to Shigure's house three days ago. He asked about you. We've been trying to contact you since. You've gone to great lengths to keep yourself hidden, haven't you: Unlisted phone number, only a P.O. box for your mail, no stable job record to be found."

Tohru looked away, unable to look into his eyes. The guilt he had managed to spark in her flamed into a raging fire at his next question.

"Kyo doesn't know, does he?"

A few tears escaped Tohru as she shook her head. She heard Hatori move closer, collapsing against him when his arms wrapped around her.

"Tohru, why didn't you tell anyone? All of the Sohmas were worried for you. Even Akito asked after you."

Tohru breathed deeply, attempting to quiet her crying, before she answered.

"I just…didn't think I should bother any of you with something like this. I traveled with Kyo for a little while. But one morning, I woke up and he was just…gone. I knew he wasn't coming back, so I moved. I found a job and I've been here since."

"Why did you think it would be a bother to any of us? Tohru, you know how important you are to all of us. Momiji and Kisa have spoken only of you the last few days."

Hatori pulled back, looking down at Tohru as she dried her eyes. He let a small smile appear before he asked seriously "You'll talk to him, won't you?"

Tohru looked to the floor, she seemed to ponder for a moment before nodding. Hatori smiled at her. "Good. Now, may I meet these two mysterious boys? Where are they anyway?"

Tohru smiled up at him, "Of course! I noticed the door was unlocked and I thought you were a pervert, or something like that, so I sent them to one of the neighbors."

Hatori sweat-dropped, his deadpan expression showing how he felt about being called a pervert. Tohru left to get the boys, returning a few minutes later with two arguing twins. Hatori's eyes widened when he saw them. _They really do look just like Kyo. _Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he moved to introduce himself to the two.

-_One Week Later- _

Tohru walked towards the daycare happier than she'd been in years. During the last week, many of the Sohmas had dropped by. Even Hiro had come with Kisa to meet Daisuke and Souta. Kagura had come too, and had spent her whole time raving about how cute the twins were- because they were so much like Kyo, of course.

Reaching the daycare, she quickly collected the boys and their things and led them home. Once they were back at the apartment, Tohru immediately set to making dinner. She had just begin making the rice when her buzzer rang. She reached the intercom and spoke.

"Hello?"

"Tohru?"

She gasped. She knew that voice, even after so much time had passed, she would know his voice anywhere. "Kyo?"

"Tohru…can I come up?"

She didn't say anything, merely pushed a button and waited. Never had two minutes felt so long. Not even waiting for her pregnancy test result seemed this bad. Even so, all too soon there was a knock on her door. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door.

She looked up at the man she'd avoided for nearly five years. He had matured over the years, his face no longer looked boyish but more defined. He had grown his hair out a bit, the long strands tired in a low ponytail reaching just past his shoulders. But his eyes were what had changed the most. They were dulled and bloodshot, as though he were dying. _He must not have slept in a week!_

Bowing slightly to him, she moved from the doorway. "Come in, Kyo."

He walked in, barely waiting until the door was closed before whipping around and speaking.

"Why did you leave?" He demanded, eyes swirling with anger and hurt.

Tohru blinked, surprised by his sudden attitude shift. "What do you mean 'Why did I leave?' You're the one who left! I woke up and you were gone!"

Kyo opened his mouth to reply but was cut off by a small voice behind him.

"Mommy?"

Kyo's head shot in the direction of the speaker, eyes widening as they locked onto the small boy's form. Tohru kept her eyes on Kyo as she spoke to her son. "Souta, please go back to your room and play with Daisuke." The boy nodded, looking at Kyo before exiting the room. Tohru watched Kyo turn back, a hurt expression shadowing his face. "Kyo…"

"Why didn't you tell me? Tohru…" He stared into her eyes, his look saying it all.

She looked away, eyes fixed on the floor. "Kyo, I thought you didn't want me. When you weren't there…I just…came here." She knew tears had begun falling, but she didn't stop them. She held her breath when she heard Kyo's footsteps. She gasped lightly when his arms surrounded her. She relaxed against him, beyond grateful for the curse breaking. He held her silently for a few minutes before he spoke again.

"Why didn't you go to Shigure? Or Hatori? Even Yuki would have been better than being alone."

Tohru sighed, "I didn't want to bother anyone. Everyone was so nice when I was in high school, I couldn't ask them do to _more_ for me."

Kyo shook his head, _That's just like her._ "How could you think I didn't want you? You're perfect." He didn't realize he'd spoken until she gasped. She looked up at him in awe.

"You think I'm perfect?"

Kyo's face turned bright red. He nodded, "Of course I do. You're kind, funny, beautiful. I never deserved you. I can't tell you how scared I was that night. I laid awake for hours, just watching you sleep, terrified that _you_ wouldn't want _me_ in the morning. I left for some insurance- kind of stupid, really. Clearly it wouldn't have worked."

Tohru pulled away, looking up at the man that held her. His face was obscured by his hair. He looked up, his eyes met hers and he smiled weakly. "Dammit, Tohru, I've been so messed up since that day. I stopped talking for two years. I woke up in the middle of the night thinking you'd come back. And I've been carrying this with me, hoping one day I would put it to good use." His hand left her shoulder and went in his pocket. He removed a small object, and held it in his palm between them.

Tohru looked down at the object and gasped. A small silver ring with a timy diamond lay in his hand. Her eyes darted to his. He smiled wider. Grabbing her hand, he held it in his own.

"I've changed a lot since I first met you, Tohru. I was just a dumb, angst filled teenager when we first met..."

_Kyo balanced atop the ladder, trying to steady himself without the use of his hands. He set down the roll of duct tape first, using the freedom to position himself under the hole in the ceiling. _

_"God I'm so stupid! I just crashed through the ceiling and put a hole there! I need to start thinking _before _I act. And that girl, she probably thinks I'm a complete psycho. Who is she anyway? I gotta remember to ask Shigure, though I'm sure that damn rat knows; why do they have a girl in the house?! Now she knows our secret and Akito is gonna be pissed." _

_As he grumbled to himself, Kyo unrolled the tarp. Pulling scissors from his pocket, he measured out the area he needed to cover. He had to admit, he felt bad. _What if she has to get her memory erased because of this? Shigure and Yuki will never forgive me if I end up ruining whatever was going on. Shigure said something about her living in a tent, I hope that was just a joke.

_Kyo looked towards the door, _Are they home already?,_ and went back to work. He quickly taped around the final edge of the tarp, jumping down just after the Tohru opened the door. He watched her look over his work, shock evident on her face. He nervously waited for her to react. _Say something dammit!

_"It's only temporary..."_

_--_

"Even after we had known each other for months I tried to keep you out..."

_Kyo lie on the rooftop, staring out at the thousands of stars twinkling against the blue-black hue. _

_"I thought I'd find you here!" _

_He jumped, turning to look at girl looking over the edge. He watched in awe as she climbed up, bringing a small tray with her. She knelt beside him and offered the rice balls on the tray. He took one, eating silently as she rambled on about God knows what. When she mentioned his martial arts, however, he immediately jumped into the conversation. He told her about his master and all the things they had done together. He was shocked when she tried to punch him, barely even tapping him for all her effort. He recovered, smiling lightly before telling her that she sucked. _

_They continued speaking late into the night. Kyo smiling all the while as he showed Tohru a few of his techniques. _

_--_

"I wasn't willing to accept that someone might actually care about _me_, the cat, an outcast. I pushed you away because I had never known anyone like you, so willing to accept people for who they are. Even when you saw what I really was..."

_The rain poured down on the beast. He looked out over the water, breathing heavily from his run. Tohru's confused look, his master tearing the beads from his wrist while she was looking right at him. Transforming for the first time in years. _

_He had always been upset when people saw him in his true form, but he had never felt ashamed as he did now. Thousands of moments flashed through his mind when he saw himself reflected in her eyes. Too horrified to imagine her reaction, he ran away. _

_Trees, twigs, and bushes had scrapped him as he ran through the woods, determined to get away. Determined not to face her again. _

_He looked over the water, trying to forget. He couldn't believe he would never get the chance to tell her how he feels about her. She would leave of course. _Why would she stay now that she's seen me? _His heart seized in pain. _What if she never speaks to me again...but stays for Yuki? No, she won't stay now that she knows the truth. Not even for that damn rat.

_He let out a cry of anguish, thrashing at a nearby sapling. He took satisfaction in ripping the roots from the ground, destroying the life of the tree the way he felt his had been destroyed. Ripped unexpectedly from what he thought had been a solid home. He sat on a rock, thinking about all the people who had turned away from him in this form. He imagined Tohru turning from him and roared again. _I can't believe this is how it will end. I may see her at school, but after this she will have her memory erased. I'll have to spend the rest of the school year seeing her, and knowing that she doesn't even know who I am. And Yuki, if there was any chance we could get along that's finished after this screw up.

_He growled as he remembered his mother. The times she said she loved him _

_He heard a few rocks scrape against each other and he looked behind him. _

_"You too, you too."_

_He tried to get away, clawing at Yuki when he grabbed his legs. He thrashed about, trying to shake the boy off. _

_"Is that all we do? Well I for one am tired of running! I don't want to do it anymore!"_

_He didn't know what she was thinking as she approached him. Afraid, he tried to throw her off when she wrapped her arms around his own. He could hardly believe her when she began to speak. _She wants me to stay? Even after this? _He felt himself transform back. He spoke to her. _

_"It's ok...if you're afraid it just means you've seen the real me."_

_He wanted nothing more than to hold her, to keep her forever. He wrapped his arms around her, hugging her- consequences be damned. Before he returned to his cat body, he whispered in her ear. _

_"Tohru, I love you" _

_--_

"You were the first person I truly loved, the first person who truly loved me..."

_Kyo stood outside Akito's room. Everyone had been shocked when Yuki didn't transform at school. Some stupid fan-club girl managed to get close enough to latch onto his arm, but Yuki remained in his human form. They had tried testing the water. Tohru hugged both Kyo and Shigure and neither transformed. The household was unsure what to make of it. _

_So, here they were, back at the Sohma house to discuss what was going on. They had, of course, tested the other members of the zodiac and found the same thing throughout- no one was transforming. _

_Kyo looked at Tohru; she seemed to be lost in thought as she looked around the hall. He smiled lightly, squeezing her hand to get her attention. _

_"Hey, everything's gonna be fine." _

_She smiled back, nodding at him before turning her gaze back to the hall. _

_The door slid open and Hatori beckoned everyone inside. Akito, Shigure, and Hatori were at the front of the room while the rest of the zodiac, and Tohru, entered. When everyone was seated, Akito began to speak._

_"Tohru Honda."_

_Tohru's grip on his hand tightened before she let go and stood. She walked to the front of the room, all eyes on her. Kyo held his breath as she moved in front of Akito and stood. He tensed, prepared to fight, when Akito stood and stared down at Tohru. Akito smirked, not saying a word before scooping Tohru into his arms. Kyo released his breath and relaxed. When akito finally set Tohru down he began explaining._

_"It seems, that this _insane_ girl has managed to break the curse..."_

_Akito kept speaking but Kyo didn't hear a word of it. His eyes didn't leave Tohru longer than a blink. _The curse is broken? Can we..._ Tohru turned around, smiling brilliantly. Their eyes met and he smiled back at her. _

_Later that night, after a long celebration, Kyo and Tohru stood alone outside of the Sohma house. They were both staring down at Kyo's wrist, or, more specifically, his beads. Tohru's hand shook slightly as it moved towards the beads. She had almost touched them when Kyo wrapped his hand around hers. _

_"Wait." _

_Tohru looked up at him, eyes questioning. He stared at his beads a moment before meeting her gaze. "What if I'm still..." He couldn't say it. He just couldn't let himself feel this hopeful only to be let down. Tohru just smiled at him and moved his hand away. She grabbed the beads, glancing quickly at Kyo before pulling them from his wrist. _

_Kyo shut his eyes tightly, waiting for that sickening feeling in his stomach that came with the horrendous transformation. One second...two seconds...three seconds. _Am I still human?_ He felt arms around him and opened his eyes. He looked down and saw Tohru hugging him. He glanced down at his body, his human body, before wrapping his arms around her. _

_Both fell to the ground in tears, laughing. Kyo pulled back, framing Tohru's face with his hands. He wiped away the stream of tears with his thumb. Smiling, he spoke. "I hate seeing you cry." _

_She shook her head slightly, "These are happy tears, Kyo. You're finally free." _

_Kyo leaned in, kissing her for the first time. Pulling back, he looked into her eyes. "I can't believe I'm gonna say something this cheesey, but I've been free since the day I first said 'I love you.'" _

_She smiled and looked down at the beads. Holding them out, she said "I think these belong to you."_

_kyo looked down at the beads he'd worn all his life. He reached out towards them, changing his course to close her hand around them. "I think you should keep them." _

_--_

"I never meant for us to be apart for so long..."

_Kyo stood outside his bedroom door. He fiddled nervously with the small box in his hand. He couldn't believe last night had actually happened, but it had. He and Tohru had been traveling together for just over three years now, and she had come to be his everything. His first and best friend, his salvation, and his lover. He didn't want to let her go. _

_He looked at his door, Tohru was sleeping inside. He smiled and took a deep breath. Opening the door as quietly as possilble, he went inside. _

_Only to find a very important woman missing. _

_--_

"I tried to find you, but no one had heard from you. I wanted you forever, I still want you forever. Is there anyway that I haven't lost you for good?"

Tohru was staring at Kyo through his short speech. She watched him choke out his words as the memories flashed through her mind. She watched a lone tear escape when he finished. _He's really changed a lot _she thought as she moved towards him. She could see him tense when she moved, and went slower. When she stood in front of him, she looked up at him. A few moments passed before she jumped, clinging onto him as if her entire life depended on it.

"I'm sorry, Kyo, I was just so scared. I never stopped loving you, but there was just too much on the line for me to stick around to find out why you weren't there."

Kyo looked up at her, terrified that she was writing him off. "Tohru I never meant-"

"But, I believe you Kyo. I don't want our boys to live without knowing you. It will take time, and it will take a lot of work, we've both changed a lot over the years. I want us to be together again."

Kyo smiled, "I'd like that."

--

_-A couple years later-_

Tohru and Kyo were scooping cake and ice cream onto the party plates. The twins were turning six today and the Sohmas were throwing the party of the century. The two couldn't have been happier to have such a large family, and to finally know who their father was. Tohru had never known what a large part of their lives they felt they were missing out on. She had imagined that four-year-olds, never knowing their father, wouldn't notice his absence, but they certainly had. Kyo had fallen right into place, the missing link to their perfect family.

Tohru smiled as Kyo put far too much ice cream on the plate. "Kyo, there are about 50 six-year-olds out there, they can't eat that much ice cream."

He gave her a goofy grin and pushed the plate aside. "I know that, that's my plate."

They both laughed before continuing their task. Yuki entered the room and grabbed a few more plates nodding to Kyo before heading back into the swarming mass of children and Sohmas.

"It's nice to see you two getting along." Tohru commented as she set aside another plate.

Kyo grunted in indifference, placing another completed plate on the table. He looked out the window at the party. The twins were both blindfolded and trying to catch their friends. He smiled, taking another plate from Tohru. "Hey, do you think we'll be ok?"

Tohru glanced down at the ring on her hand. Looking back up at Kyo, she remembered everything they'd been through. "We're going to be just fine."

* * *

**So, that's that. I got stuck in a cabin on a rainy weekend so I decided to finish this. So, I had a few notes about this that I wanted to comment about.**

**First off, this is based on the anime. I'm looking forward to reading the manga but I haven't gotten around to it yet. . **

**I realize it's a bit OOC that Tohru would just up and leave after she and Kyo had sex (in case you missed that detail- they did), but I feel that Tohru would be careful about something like that and wouldn't tolerate waking up alone after that. Kyo is also a tad OOC but I figure that he's matured a lot since.  
**

**Let's see...oh yes, names. I'm very unoriginal when it comes to naming things so Takahashi, Daisuke, and Souta are based on names I've heard in various other anime. So any DN Angel or InuYasha fans that are reading this- don't attack me. Sachi...I don't even remember where that came from. **

**So, I think that's all. I hope you enjoyed it!**


End file.
